onegod

One God

Shema Yisrael, YHWH Eloheinu, YHWH Echad.

Hear, O Israel: Yahweh our Elohim is one YHWH.

There’s a lot more to the “Shema Israel” than the catchy tune that goes with it. The sound is so engaging that we might sometimes forget what we’re singing about, so let’s drill down into the Word and remind ourselves why this is such a foundational element of Faith.

YHWH is a SPIRIT BEING and He is One. He is dominant and in control of all other spiritual forces, in and outside, of the universe we know about. Judaism is the original and oldest form of monotheism, however, dualism in all it’s forms is simply also called paganism. Dualism thinking teaches that Yahweh is at war with Satan the Devil. Monotheism teaches that Yahweh animates Satan the Devil. YHWH created all other, lesser spirit entities, He sustains other spirits and let’s the Adversary do all his dirty deeds, but YHWH holds the Adversary on a chain so that he can only do as much destruction as YHWH permits.

Dualism in Christianity is commonplace, the vast majority of Christians, Messianics, Israelitish folk who are new to the Faith Once Delivered bring along a dualistic ideology in many forms, too many to try to list. The biggest example is when faced with making important decisions for our lives. Many people desperately want to know the Father’s perfect will for their lives, but many are fearful and hesitant of making decisions. Yet, we all know that procrastination and not making a decision is in fact… making a decision, often the worst.

Monotheism and Netzari Judaism teaches that the decisions we make come from within who we are in Mashiyach. YHWH gives us the delights of our hearts so when the decisions we make will be pleasing to the Father and bring us joy and happiness being according to His Word. Our decisions are in Him then. However, many seek for external signs, heavens opening, angels singing, before they feel confident about their decisions and this is because they have been smitten by dualism. Their soul and spirit are not echad, or, One with YHWH and His Mashiyach. Monotheism focuses our minds and spirits to our own spirit being, as we see YHWH as ONE and His Name One. The most important decisions we will make in our lifetime has to do with our spirituality, who we will live our lives, whether we will all the Ruach haKodesh to write Torah upon our hearts, whether we will acknowledge and receive YHWH’s Son as Mashiyach and Savior and King of Kings and Master of our lives.

A good argument could be made that the fruits of polytheistic (or trinitarian) thinking is multiplicity and confusion when it comes to the spiritual word, but of course our spiritual world also undergirds our intellectual and emotional world. Whenever you have more that one God in your life, you’re going to have a war going on, you will have confusion, and you will not be able to have the confidence to make decisions that you can completely and wholeheartedly rest in. That’s an important reason why Jews are so devoted to say the shema.

Shema Yisrael, YHWH Eloheinu, YHWH Echad.

Hear, O Israel: Yahweh our Elohim is one YHWH.

The “Shema” becomes an authority of belief and action by which all other decisions rest. This is the declaration of monotheism that connects our spirit, mind, will, and emotions to the One Divine Source Who is YHWH, so we don’t permit confusion to take a hold of our thoughts or decision making. If you’re not 100% confident in the Oneness of YHWH it would be a very good idea to pray and ask the Father to reveal this, and listen to His Word about this because the reality of YHWH’s Sovereign and Unique Oness is the central foundational element of His Word, which is Scripture. Why not make a declaration now that YHWH is Echad, One by speaking the “Shema” and believing that His will and His Word are central and vital to knowing Him?

Read Deuteronomy 6 as your declaration of your Oneness with Yahweh. This is not a “Jewish” prayer, it is universal to all inhabitants of the world, the original monotheism that was revealed by the Spirit of YHWH to all who follow YHWH and His Mashiyach.

Let’s also consider the last verse in this chapter:

“And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before Yahweh our Elohim, as he has commanded us.”
Deuteronomy 6:25

Notice that “it shall be our righteousness“, in other words righteousness will belong to us and we will belong to it. When we choose to observe Torah. This is the impetus of believing in One Elohim (God) and this is what is revealed to us in Mashiyach Y’shua within the Name, YAHWEH TSIDKENU (YHWH our Righteousness).

When we believe in ONE ELOHIM we also by Faith and Belief are able to enter into the unity with ONE. This is a spiritual Law that those who receive it understand and those who don’t are what is known as “theologians”… making up all sorts of theories about the Echad (Oneness) of YHWH, but not entering in themselves.

So if you’re not completely certain if you’re a monotheist and follower of Y’shua Mashiyach (a.k.a. the Lord Jesus Christ) then now would be a good time to renounce all false theological meanderings about the Father. Simple renounce any polytheism, like the “three persons” of the Trinity which is polytheism, or if you think there are “two gods” a greater YHWH and a lesser YHWH, that’s polytheism and paganism and just plain stupid if we take the time to understand how Y’shua revealed himself, “in the Name of Yahweh”.

Time and time again Yeshua taught us that he came in His Father’s Name. He even bears his Father’s Name. Yehoshua means YHWH is Salvation. In Isaiah we read,

Tell ye, and bring them near; yes, let them take counsel together: who has declared this from ancient time? who has told it from that time? have not I Yahweh? and there is no Elohim (God) beside me; a just Elohim and a Saviour; there is none beside me.

Isaiah 45:21

Here’s a beautiful testimony from King David:

“The Elohim (God) of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; You save me from violence. I will call on Yahweh, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.”
2 Samuel 22:3-4

Testimony from the prophet Hosea says:

Yet I am Yahweh Elohim from the land of Egypt, and you shall know no god but me: for there is no saviour beside me.
Hosea 13:4

Yes Miriam, you are are indeed blessed of all other woman, and, notice that Mary wasn’t worshipping her “baby” but both her and Simeon knew there is only One Elohim and the little baby Y’shua was bringing the Salvation of YHWH to this earth. A beautiful picture of the Father’s salvation through His son.

For mine eyes have seen your salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.
Luke 2:30-32

So we see that YHWH is Salvation and there is none other, and that YHWH sent His Son to this earth as His representative and to shed His own son’s blood for the remission of sin, to make an atonement. So it’s not that difficult to see that paganism crept into Christianity and put the focus on the son rather than on the Father who sent Salvation. This is where many have come into confusion and false teaching. Scripture says,

Shema Yisrael, YHWH Eloheinu, YHWH Echad.

Hear, O Israel: Yahweh our Elohim is one YHWH.

So there is no depreciating of “Christology” when we understand that Y’shua sits at the Right Hand of His Father. Y’shua is a Spirit Being as is his Father, he holds the unique office of haMashiyach, there is only one Mashiyach. So let’s consider this.

Are you a body with spirit, in other words is your physical body the substance of who you are, with a spirit tacked on to you… OR, are you a spirit being with a body? From examining Scripture w see that we are spirit beings, conceived in the Mind of YHWH before the foundations of the world began who were brought into this world and presented a physical body. We have both physical bodies and souls, in these “earthen vessels”.

We are spirit beings, and, as such our unity with the Father is highly dependant upon being in harmony with His Spirit, and He is One Spirit, not two or three. This is also why Scripture gives us so many places that expose idolatry as the antipathy of true worship, putting any god before us, other than the One True Elohim is a sin against our own souls and spirits because any other god is going to have spiritual ramifications that lead towards haSatan (the Adversary).

No one can see the Father, Son and Holy Spirit because the nature of the godhead is spiritual, not physical, therefore the three “persons of the trinity” concept is rooted in religious tradition that is based on dualism and is paganism, because YHWH Eloheinu is Echad. Echad means He is One, Unified in One, and of course as it pertains to YHWH Echad is also numerically One.

The beauty of understanding and meditating upon YHWH and understanding Him as One, helps us recognize our Unity in the Father through His Mashiyach. Mashiyach means anointed One. Which means that YHWH chose and anointed Yeshua, His Son as the Miltha (Word or Manifestation) of YHWH who became flesh and dwelt among us.

As spirit beings who inhabit physical bodies we all know that this life isn’t our final destination…

For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is Elohim (God).
Hebrews 11:10